Method, mobile terminal, system and computer program product for real time content attributing

ABSTRACT

A method of providing content attributing during an ongoing conversation includes receiving an assignment of an attribute to a selected portion of content from the ongoing conversation, and asynchronously delivering the selected portion to selected recipients based on the attribute.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to mobile terminaltechnology and, more particularly, relate to a method, mobile terminal,system and computer program product for providing real time contentattributing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The modern communications era has brought about a tremendous expansionof wireline and wireless networks. Computer networks, televisionnetworks, and telephony networks are experiencing an unprecedentedtechnological expansion, fueled by consumer demand. Wireless and mobilenetworking technologies have addressed related consumer demands, whileproviding more flexibility and immediacy of information transfer.

Current and future networking technologies continue to facilitate easeof information transfer and convenience to users. Concurrent with thetechnological expansion of networking technologies has been a consumerdemand for improved wireless network based services. For example, webbrowsing and other web based services, short message services, email andmany services capable of deployment at a mobile terminal arecontinuously being developed. One area in which there is a demand toprovide improved mobile terminal service relates to internet protocol(IP) based real time conversations. Many means for providing mobileterminal users with an ability to conduct real time conversations arecurrently in existence, such as instant messaging (IM) and instant relaychat (IRC).

It is becoming more common for text-based chat to be used amongparticular groups of people as a means for discussion of topics,organization of events or meetings, etc. IM is an example of atext-based chat mechanism that is not generally recognized as aneffective group level communication tool. Although groups maycommunicate via IM, such communication is generally performed via aseries of person-to-person instant messages. Accordingly, for example,in order for an entire group to be informed of an event, multipleinstant messages must be sent among the group members. IRC is generallyconsidered to be more conducive to group communications. In IRC, a userlogs on to a channel to communicate with other channel members in anIP-based real time environment. However, particularly in the context ofgroup based conversations where not all members of the group arecurrently monitoring the channel, a problem is created in that those notmonitoring the channel will miss details of the discussion. Thus, forexample, if a decision is made by the group to meet at a particularlocation, members not currently monitoring the channel will have to becontacted by separate means. In other words, IRC and other current groupbased communication mechanisms that are capable of serving mobileterminal users do not support asynchronous communication. Thus, forexample, a series of instant messages or other communications that aremanually initiated may be necessary to inform all group members ofimportant group related information.

In light of the problems discussed above, there is a need to provide anIP-based communication mechanism that reduces the burden on users ofmobile terminals to deliver notification of events, decisions,questions, etc. to members of a group that are not currently monitoringthe group's communication channel.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A method, mobile terminal, system and computer program product aretherefore provided that enable a user of a mobile terminal to assign anattribute to content that arises during a real time conversation on acommunication channel. Then, based on the attribute, the content may bedistributed to group members, or at least those group members who arenot actively monitoring the channel at the time the content is created.Furthermore, either the attribute or an indication of the importance ofthe content may determine a means by which the group members receive thecontent. Thus, for example, a messaging system is provided which givesmobile terminal users an ability to asynchronously share content that isreceived during a real time communication session with group members whoare not monitoring the real time communication session.

In one exemplary embodiment, a method of providing real time contentattributing during an ongoing conversation is provided. The methodincludes receiving an assignment of an attribute to a selected portionof content from the ongoing conversation, and asynchronously deliveringthe selected portion to selected recipients based on the attribute.

In another exemplary embodiment, a computer program product forproviding real time content attributing during an ongoing conversationis provided. The computer program product includes at least onecomputer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program codeportions stored therein. The computer-readable program code portionsinclude a first and second executable portions. The first executableportion is for receiving an assignment of an attribute to a selectedportion of content from the ongoing conversation. The second executableportion is for asynchronously delivering the selected portion toselected recipients based on the attribute.

In another exemplary embodiment, a mobile terminal for providing realtime content attributing is provided. The mobile terminal includes anattributing element and an asynchronous communication element. Theattributing element is configured to receive an assignment of anattribute to a selected portion of content from the ongoingconversation. The asynchronous communication element is in communicationwith the attributing element. The asynchronous communication element isconfigured to asynchronously deliver the selected portion to selectedrecipients based on the attribute.

In another exemplary embodiment, a system for providing real timecontent attributing is provided. The system includes a mobile terminaland a client device in communication via a communication portal. Themobile terminal includes an attributing element and an asynchronouscommunication element. The attributing element is configured to receivean assignment of an attribute to a selected portion of content from theongoing conversation. The asynchronous communication element is incommunication with the attributing element. The asynchronouscommunication element is configured to asynchronously deliver theselected portion to selected recipients based on the attribute.

In another exemplary embodiment, a mobile terminal for providing realtime content attributing is provided. The mobile terminal includes anattributing means and an asynchronous communication means. Theattributing means is for receiving an assignment of an attribute to aselected portion of content from the ongoing conversation. Theasynchronous communication means is in communication with theattributing means. The asynchronous communication means is forasynchronously delivering the selected portion to selected recipientsbased on the attribute.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will nowbe made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn toscale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a mobile terminal according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communications systemaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a system for providing real timecontent attributing at a mobile terminal according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of elements of a communication portalfor providing real time content attributing at a mobile terminalaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart according to an exemplary method ofproviding real time content attributing at a mobile terminal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described more fullyhereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some,but not all embodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, theinvention may be embodied in many different forms and should not beconstrued as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, theseembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicablelegal requirements. Like reference numerals refer to like elementsthroughout.

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a mobile terminal 10 that wouldbenefit from the present invention. It should be understood, however,that a mobile telephone as illustrated and hereinafter described ismerely illustrative of one type of mobile terminal that would benefitfrom the present invention and, therefore, should not be taken to limitthe scope of the present invention. While several embodiments of themobile terminal 10 are illustrated and will be hereinafter described forpurposes of example, other types of mobile terminals, such as portabledigital assistants (PDAs), pagers, mobile televisions, laptop computersand other types of voice and text communications systems, can readilyemploy the present invention.

In addition, while several embodiments of the method of the presentinvention are performed or used by a mobile terminal 10, the method maybe employed by other than a mobile terminal. Moreover, the system andmethod of the present invention will be primarily described inconjunction with mobile communications applications. It should beunderstood, however, that the system and method of the present inventioncan be utilized in conjunction with a variety of other applications,both in the mobile communications industries and outside of the mobilecommunications industries.

The mobile terminal 10 includes an antenna 12 in operable communicationwith a transmitter 14 and a receiver 16. The mobile terminal 10 furtherincludes a controller 20 or other processing element that providessignals to and receives signals from the transmitter 14 and receiver 16,respectively. The signals include signaling information in accordancewith the air interface standard of the applicable cellular system, andalso user speech and/or user generated data. In this regard, the mobileterminal 10 is capable of operating with one or more air interfacestandards, communication protocols, modulation types, and access types.By way of illustration, the mobile terminal 10 is capable of operatingin accordance with any of a number of first, second and/orthird-generation communication protocols or the like. For example, themobile terminal 10 may be capable of operating in accordance withsecond-generation (2G) wireless communication protocols IS-36 (TDMA),GSM, and IS-95 (CDMA) or third-generation wireless communicationprotocol Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA).

It is understood that the controller 20 includes circuitry required forimplementing audio and logic functions of the mobile terminal 10. Forexample, the controller 20 may be comprised of a digital signalprocessor device, a microprocessor device, and various analog to digitalconverters, digital to analog converters, and other support circuits.Control and signal processing functions of the mobile terminal 10 areallocated between these devices according to their respectivecapabilities. The controller 20 thus may also include the functionalityto convolutionally encode and interleave message and data prior tomodulation and transmission. The controller 20 can additionally includean internal voice coder, and may include an internal data modem.Further, the controller 20 may include functionality to operate one ormore software programs, which may be stored in memory. For example, thecontroller 20 may be capable of operating a connectivity program, suchas a conventional Web browser. The connectivity program may then allowthe mobile terminal 10 to transmit and receive Web content, such aslocation-based content, according to a Wireless Application Protocol(WAP), for example.

The mobile terminal 10 also comprises a user interface including anoutput device such as a conventional earphone or speaker 24, a ringer22, a microphone 26, a display 28, and a user input interface, all ofwhich are coupled to the controller 20. The user input interface, whichallows the mobile terminal 10 to receive data, may include any of anumber of devices allowing the mobile terminal 10 to receive data, suchas a keypad 30, a touch display (not shown) or other input device. Inembodiments including the keypad 30, the keypad 30 may include theconventional numeric (0-9) and related keys (#, *), and other keys usedfor operating the mobile terminal 10. Alternatively, the keypad 30 mayinclude a conventional QWERTY keypad. The mobile terminal 10 furtherincludes a battery 34, such as a vibrating battery pack, for poweringvarious circuits that are required to operate the mobile terminal 10, aswell as optionally providing mechanical vibration as a detectableoutput.

The mobile terminal 10 may further include a user identity module (UIM)38. The UIM 38 is typically a memory device having a processor built in.The UIM 38 may include, for example, a subscriber identity module (SIM),a universal integrated circuit card (UICC), a universal subscriberidentity module (USIM), a removable user identity module (R-UIM), etc.The UIM 38 typically stores information elements related to a mobilesubscriber. In addition to the UIM 38, the mobile terminal 10 may beequipped with memory. For example, the mobile terminal 10 may includevolatile memory 40, such as volatile Random Access Memory (RAM)including a cache area for the temporary storage of data. The mobileterminal 10 may also include other non-volatile memory 42, which can beembedded and/or may be removable. The non-volatile memory 42 canadditionally or alternatively comprise an EEPROM, flash memory or thelike, such as that available from the SanDisk Corporation of Sunnyvale,Calif., or Lexar Media Inc. of Fremont, Calif. The memories can storeany of a number of pieces of information, and data, used by the mobileterminal 10 to implement the functions of the mobile terminal 10. Forexample, the memories can include an identifier, such as aninternational mobile equipment identification (IMEI) code, capable ofuniquely identifying the mobile terminal 10.

Referring now to FIG. 2, an illustration of one type of system thatwould benefit from the present invention is provided. The systemincludes a plurality of network devices. As shown, one or more mobileterminals 10 may each include an antenna 12 for transmitting signals toand for receiving signals from a base site or base station (BS) 44. Thebase station 44 may be a part of one or more cellular or mobile networkseach of which includes elements required to operate the network, such asa mobile switching center (MSC) 46. As well known to those skilled inthe art, the mobile network may also be referred to as a BaseStation/MSC/Interworking function (BMI). In operation, the MSC 46 iscapable of routing calls to and from the mobile terminal 10 when themobile terminal 10 is making and receiving calls. The MSC 46 can alsoprovide a connection to landline trunks when the mobile terminal 10 isinvolved in a call. In addition, the MSC 46 can be capable ofcontrolling the forwarding of messages to and from the mobile terminal10, and can also control the forwarding of messages for the mobileterminal 10 to and from a messaging center. It should be noted thatalthough the MSC 46 is shown in the system of FIG. 2, the MSC 46 ismerely an exemplary network device and the present invention is notlimited to use in a network employing an MSC.

The MSC 46 can be coupled to a data network, such as a local areanetwork (LAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), and/or a wide areanetwork (WAN). The MSC 46 can be directly coupled to the data network.In one typical embodiment, however, the MSC 46 is coupled to a GTW 48,and the GTW 48 is coupled to a WAN, such as the Internet 50. In turn,devices such as processing elements (e.g., personal computers, servercomputers or the like) can be coupled to the mobile terminal 10 via theInternet 50. For example, as explained below, the processing elementscan include one or more processing elements associated with a computingsystem 52 (two shown in FIG. 2), origin server 54 (one shown in FIG. 2)or the like, as described below.

The BS 44 can also be coupled to a signaling GPRS (General Packet RadioService) support node (SGSN) 56. As known to those skilled in the art,the SGSN 56 is typically capable of performing functions similar to theMSC 46 for packet switched services. The SGSN 56, like the MSC 46, canbe coupled to a data network, such as the Internet 50. The SGSN 56 canbe directly coupled to the data network. In a more typical embodiment,however, the SGSN 56 is coupled to a packet-switched core network, suchas a GPRS core network 58. The packet-switched core network is thencoupled to another GTW 48, such as a GTW GPRS support node (GGSN) 60,and the GGSN 60 is coupled to the Internet 50. In addition to the GGSN60, the packet-switched core network can also be coupled to a GTW 48.Also, the GGSN 60 can be coupled to a messaging center. In this regard,the GGSN 60 and the SGSN 56, like the MSC 46, may be capable ofcontrolling the forwarding of messages, such as multimedia messagingservice (MMS) messages. The GGSN 60 and SGSN 56 may also be capable ofcontrolling the forwarding of messages for the mobile terminal 10 to andfrom the messaging center.

In addition, by coupling the SGSN 56 to the GPRS core network 58 and theGGSN 60, devices such as a computing system 52 and/or origin server 54may be coupled to the mobile terminal 10 via the Internet 50, SGSN 56and GGSN 60. In this regard, devices such as the computing system 52and/or origin server 54 may communicate with the mobile terminal 10across the SGSN 56, GPRS core network 58 and the GGSN 60. By directly orindirectly connecting mobile terminals 10 and the other devices (e.g.,computing system 52, origin server 54, etc.) to the Internet 50, themobile terminals 10 may communicate with the other devices and with oneanother, such as according to the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), tothereby carry out various functions of the mobile terminals 10.

Although not every element of every possible mobile network is shown anddescribed herein, it should be appreciated that the mobile terminal 10may be coupled to one or more of any of a number of different networksthrough the BS 44. In this regard, the network(s) can be capable ofsupporting communication in accordance with any one or more of a numberof first-generation (1G), second-generation (2G), 2.5G and/orthird-generation (3G) mobile communication protocols or the like. Forexample, one or more of the network(s) can be capable of supportingcommunication in accordance with 2G wireless communication protocolsIS-136 (TDMA), GSM, and IS-95 (CDMA). Also, for example, one or more ofthe network(s) can be capable of supporting communication in accordancewith 2.5G wireless communication protocols GPRS, Enhanced Data GSMEnvironment (EDGE), or the like. Further, for example, one or more ofthe network(s) can be capable of supporting communication in accordancewith 3G wireless communication protocols such as Universal MobileTelephone System (UMTS) network employing Wideband Code DivisionMultiple Access (WCDMA) radio access technology. Some narrow-band AMPS(NAMPS), as well as TACS, network(s) may also benefit from embodimentsof the present invention, as should dual or higher mode mobile stations(e.g., digital/analog or TDMA/CDMA/analog phones).

The mobile terminal 10 can further be coupled to one or more wirelessaccess points (APs) 62. The APs 62 may comprise access points configuredto communicate with the mobile terminal 10 in accordance with techniquessuch as, for example, radio frequency (RF), Bluetooth (BT), infrared(IrDA) or any of a number of different wireless networking techniques,including wireless LAN (WLAN) techniques such as IEEE 802.11 (e.g.,802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, etc.), WiMAX techniques such as IEEE802.16, and/or ultra wideband (UWB) techniques such as IEEE 802.15 orthe like. The APs 62 may be coupled to the Internet 50. Like with theMSC 46, the APs 62 can be directly coupled to the Internet 50. In oneembodiment, however, the APs 62 are indirectly coupled to the Internet50 via a GTW 48. Furthermore, in one embodiment, the BS 44 may beconsidered as another AP 62. As will be appreciated, by directly orindirectly connecting the mobile terminals 10 and the computing system52, the origin server 54, and/or any of a number of other devices, tothe Internet 50, the mobile terminals 10 can communicate with oneanother, the computing system, etc., to thereby carry out variousfunctions of the mobile terminals 10, such as to transmit data, contentor the like to, and/or receive content, data or the like from, thecomputing system 52. As used herein, the terms “data,” “content,”“information” and similar terms may be used interchangeably to refer todata capable of being transmitted, received and/or stored in accordancewith embodiments of the present invention. Thus, use of any such termsshould not be taken to limit the spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

Although not shown in FIG. 2, in addition to or in lieu of coupling themobile terminal 10 to computing systems 52 across the Internet 50, themobile terminal 10 and computing system 52 may be coupled to one anotherand communicate in accordance with, for example, RF, BT, IrDA or any ofa number of different wireline or wireless communication techniques,including LAN, WLAN, WiMAX and/or UWB techniques. One or more of thecomputing systems 52 can additionally, or alternatively, include aremovable memory capable of storing content, which can thereafter betransferred to the mobile terminal 10. Further, the mobile terminal 10can be coupled to one or more electronic devices, such as printers,digital projectors and/or other multimedia capturing, producing and/orstoring devices (e.g., other terminals). Like with the computing systems52, the mobile terminal 10 may be configured to communicate with theportable electronic devices in accordance with techniques such as, forexample, RF, BT, IrDA or any of a number of different wireline orwireless communication techniques, including USB, LAN, WLAN, WiMAXand/or UWB techniques.

An exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be describedwith reference to FIG. 3, in which certain elements of a system forproviding real time content attributing at a mobile terminal aredisplayed. The system of FIG. 3 may be employed, for example, using atleast one of the mobile terminals 10 of FIG. 2 and also possibly usingthe computing system 52 or the origin server 54 of FIG. 2. However, itshould be noted that the system of FIG. 3, may also be employed on avariety of other devices, both mobile and fixed, and therefore, thepresent invention should not be limited to application on devices suchas the mobile terminal 10 of FIGS. 1 and 2. It should also be noted,however, that while FIG. 3 illustrates one example of a configuration ofa system for providing real time content attributing, numerous otherconfigurations may also be used to implement embodiments of the presentinvention.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a system for providing real time contentattributing at a mobile terminal is provided. The system includes aserver terminal 70, an active client terminal 72, and an inactive clientterminal 74. It is assumed that the active client terminal 72 is incommunication with the server terminal 70 via a communication channel76. The inactive client terminal 74 is capable of communication with theserver terminal and the active client terminal 72 via the communicationchannel 76, but it is assumed that the inactive terminal 74 is notcurrently monitoring the communication channel 76. It should be notedthat although FIG. 3 only shows one active client terminal and oneinactive client terminal, the server terminal 70 is capable ofcommunication with multiple active and inactive client terminals. Itshould be understood that the server terminal 70, the active clientterminal 72, and the inactive client terminal 74 may each be embodied asa mobile phone described above in reference to FIG. 1. Alternatively,the server terminal 70, the active client terminal 72, and the inactiveclient terminal 74 may each be any one of the exemplary mobile terminalsmentioned above, such as portable digital assistants (PDAs), pagers,mobile televisions, laptop computers and other types of voice and textcommunications systems, or even a fixed terminal such as a personalcomputer. The server terminal 70 could also be a client server capableof communication with a plurality of clients.

The communication channel 76 may be embodied in, for example, any of thewireline or wireless communication techniques described above. In anexemplary embodiment, the communication channel 76 is an IP-basedwireless communication channel capable of allowing a plurality of mobileterminals belonging to a group to monitor text communications betweenany members of the group.

In an exemplary embodiment, the server terminal 70 includes a managementmodule 78. The management module 78 may be any means or device embodiedin hardware, software or a combination of hardware and software that iscapable of executing scripts or other instructions for setting up andmanaging a communication portal 80 which is hosted at the serverterminal 70. The communication portal 80 provides the means by whichmultiple group members may communicate with each other. In other words,the communication portal 80 may be a chat forum for mobile terminalusers. The scripts or other instructions that create the functionalityof the communication portal 80 may be stored on a memory of or otherwiseaccessible by the server terminal 70 and executed by a processingelement of the server terminal 70. Furthermore, the management module 78may include a management file, which is stored in a memory of the serverterminal 70. The management file may include instructions for executionto create and manage the communication portal 80.

In an exemplary embodiment, the management file and any other scriptsnecessary to create and manage the communication portal 80 may bedownloaded wirelessly or otherwise onto the server terminal 70.Alternatively, the management file and any other scripts necessary tocreate and manage the communication portal 80 may be pre-installed onthe server terminal 70. Accordingly, in a particular communicationsystem each client terminal may also possess a capability to act as aserver terminal for a particular group of members, however, only onegroup member will act as the server terminal 70 at any one time. Thus,the server terminal 70 is not defined merely as a device having thecapability of acting as the server terminal, but rather the serverterminal 70 is defined as a device performing the functions of theserver terminal. In other words, the server terminal 70 is defined asthe terminal that has set up the communication portal 80 and isresponsible for managing the communication portal 80. It should also benoted that the server terminal 70 may simultaneously manage a pluralityof communication portals in which each communication portal correspondsto a different group of members or client terminals.

The communication portal 80 may be established by a user of the serverterminal 70 (i.e., portal manager) by any suitable means. For example,the server terminal 70 may provide a user interface including a menufrom which an option to create the communication portal 80 may beselected by the portal manager. Once the communication portal 80 iscreated, a web site containing a unique URL is hosted at the serverterminal 70. Following creation of the communication portal 80, theportal manager may assign a name to the communication portal 80 andinvite potential members to join. An invitation to the potential membersmay include a link to the unique URL that is hosted at the serverterminal 70. The invitation may also include a text portion describing,for example, the name of the communication portal 80, identification ofthe portal manager or a topic or purpose of the communication portal 80,and any other suitable information. The invitation may be embodied as amessage such as, for example, a MMS message, a short message service(SMS) message, etc. Accordingly, for example, the invitation may arriveat a potential member's mobile terminal as an SMS message if the mobileterminal is a cellular phone, or the invitation may arrive at thepotential member's personal computer as an email message. The potentialmember may then link to the unique URL to access the communicationportal 80 as the active client terminal 72, thereby becoming an activemember of the group. When the active client terminal 72 stops monitoringthe communication portal 80, the active client terminal 72 becomesinstead the inactive client terminal 74. In the context of the presentembodiment, monitoring refers to the act of having an active link to thecommunication portal 80.

It will be understood that at any given time there may be a plurality ofeither or both of the active and inactive terminals 72 and 74 while theserver terminal 70 is hosting the communication portal 80. It will alsobe understood that any terminal that is monitoring the communicationportal 80 is an active client terminal 72 while any terminal that is onthe member list but not monitoring the communication portal 80 is aninactive client terminal 74. Accordingly, once added to the member list,a terminal is an inactive client terminal 74 until such time as theterminal links to the communication portal 80 when the terminal becomesan active client terminal 72. Furthermore, the terminal may undergo anynumber of state changes between being the active and inactive terminals72 and 74. Thus, the inactive client terminal 74 could be an invitedcontact that has not yet linked to the unique URL, or a formerly activeclient terminal 74.

A respective format of the invitation may be determined at themanagement module 78. For example, according to one exemplaryembodiment, the portal manager may store a contact list, such as a phonebook, on the server terminal 70. The contact list may include contactinformation such as a telephone number, email address, etc. associatedwith each contact listed in the contact list. Each contact may be afriend, business associate, or other acquaintance that the portalmanager may wish to invite to the communication portal 80. Using themanagement module 78, the portal manager may select some or all of thecontacts in the contact list to receive the invitation. Accordingly, themanagement module 78 sends the selected contacts the invitation in aformat of the contact information associated with the contact in thecontact list. If multiple contact means are listed for a particularcontact, the portal manager may choose one or more of the multiplecontact means to invite the contact to join the communication portal 80.The management module 78 may then include a member list which includescontact information for each group member. Group members are defined asthose contacts that have received an invitation to join thecommunication portal 80. Alternatively, group members could be definedonly as those contacts that have accepted the invitation, for example,by logging onto the communication portal 80 via the unique URL. Thus,the inactive client terminal 74 could be an invited contact that has notyet linked to the unique URL, or a formerly active client terminal 74.In any case, both the active and inactive client terminals 72 and 74 aregroup members along with the server terminal 70. The active clientterminal 72 is a group member that is currently monitoring thecommunication portal 80, while the inactive client terminal 74 is agroup member that is not currently monitoring the communication portal80.

In an alternative exemplary embodiment, the portal manager may manuallysend the invitation to a potential member, for example, via an SMSmessage or an email. Alternatively, the server terminal 70 may conduct aproximity scan to determine mobile terminals or other communicationdevices in proximity to the server terminal 70. A list of proximatelylocated devices may then be generated, from which particular devices tosend invitations to may be selected. In an exemplary embodiment, aBluetooth scan may be performed and a list of Bluetooth capable devicesthat are proximately located may be generated, from which the portalmanager may select particular devices to which the invitations are to besent. Accordingly, a portal manager who wishes to invite potentialmembers but who does not have contact information for the potentialmembers may invite all or selected ones of the potential members inproximity to the portal manager without knowing their contactinformation.

In an exemplary embodiment, the portal manager may automatically resendinvitations to contacts that have previously received invitations, buthave not yet linked to the communication portal 80. For example, themanagement module may enable the portal manager to select invitations tobe sent to nonresponsive invitees at a predetermined interval.Alternatively, the portal manager may automatically resend invitationsto group members that have not participated in group conversations orlinked to the communication portal 80 for a predetermined period oftime.

The communication portal 80 may have a plurality of features associatedwith or accessible through the communication portal 80. In an exemplaryembodiment, the communication portal 80 may include features such as abanner, a message board, a real time chat line, and an activity page.The banner feature may enable display of a message to all group membersin a prominent location when the communication portal 80 is accessed.The message may include an announcement or any other text communicationmeant for all group members. In an exemplary embodiment, the bannerfeature may be accessed and altered only by the portal manager. However,in an alternative embodiment, any group member may access and alter thebanner feature by inserting a new message. The message board feature mayallow any of the group members to post messages, which remain posted,for example, on a message board page until a predetermined time or untildeleted. The message board page may be accessible by all group membersto enable all group members to read messages posted thereon. Theactivity page may include statistics related to activity orparticipation of the group members. For example, the activity page mayinclude an indication of which of the group members is most active atmessaging, posting information on the message board, etc. The activitypage could also be used for any other purpose intended to facilitategroup cohesion and interest in maintaining the communication portal 80.

The real time chat feature may include a message line or other means bywhich real time conversations may be conducted. In other words, the realtime chat feature may provide a forum for real time chat conversations.The conversations may be viewed by all group members who are currentlymonitoring the message line of the communication portal 80. The messageline may also include a mechanism by which communication threads definedby real time conversation text may be saved to the message board page.For example, the message line may enable conversation threads to becopied and pasted to the message board page. The message line may alsoinclude a mechanism by which group members that are not currentlymonitoring the communication portal 80 may be invited to join in anactive conversation. For example, an SMS message or any other suitablenotification may be sent to a group member that is not currentlymonitoring the communication portal 80. Each of the features describedabove may be accessed via a user interface, for example, of the mobileterminal 10. The features may be accessed via a menu selection, iconselection, or selection of any object associated with the features.

Real time content attributing will now be explained with reference toFIG. 4 in the context of real time chat conversation via the messageline described above. However, it should be understood that the messageline is simply one exemplary forum for practicing an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention and thus, the present inventionshould not be construed as being limited to such a forum. FIG. 4 is ablock diagram showing elements of the communication portal 80. Theelements of FIG. 4 may be embodied as instructions stored in a memory ofor otherwise accessible by the server terminal 70. However, it should benoted that the elements of FIG. 4, may also be embodied in other devicesor means such as software, hardware or combinations of hardware andsoftware and thus, the present invention should not be limited toapplication on devices such as the mobile terminal 10 of FIG. 1 or theserver terminal 70 of FIG. 3. It should also be noted, that while FIG. 4illustrates one example of a configuration of a system for providingreal time content attributing, numerous other configurations may also beused to implement the present invention.

Referring now to FIG. 4, the server terminal 70 may include a real timecommunication element 82, an attributing element 84, and an asynchronouscommunication element 86. Each of the real time communication element82, the attributing element 84, and the asynchronous communicationelement 86 may be any means or device embodied in hardware, software ora combination of hardware and software that is capable of performing thefunctions associated with each of the corresponding elements asdescribed below. Although each of the modules may reside on the serverterminal 70, in an exemplary embodiment, any active client terminal mayaccess functionality associated with each of the elements.

In an exemplary embodiment, the real time communication element 82 is amodule of the message line which accepts text input from any of thegroup members and displays such text input for viewing by all othergroup members who are monitoring the message line. Accordingly, whengroup members communicate via the message line, such communicationsthreads are communicated through the real time communication element 82.The communication threads are displayed during a currently ongoingconversation. However, the communication threads are typically deletedor, in any case, lost after a conversation terminates. Accordingly, forexample, if a decision is made during the currently ongoingconversation, which would desirably be made known to group members thatare not currently monitoring the communication portal 80 (e.g., theinactive terminal 74), then the group members that are not currentlymonitoring the communication portal 80 would have to be contactedseparately in order to receive notification of the decision.Alternatively, the communication thread could be copied and posted tothe message board page, as described above. However, there is noguarantee that the message board page will be consulted when the groupmembers that are not currently monitoring the communication portal 80access the communication portal 80 at some future time. Thus, theattributing element 84 and the asynchronous communication element 86 maybe employed to inform the group members that are not currentlymonitoring the communication portal 80 of the decision or of otherinformation flowing from the conversation.

The attributing element 84 may be capable of attaching or assigning anattribute to a selected portion of a communication thread. By attachingthe attribute to the selected portion, the selected portion may becommunicated to either all group members, or at least all group membersnot currently monitoring the communication portal 80. Accordingly, forexample, if a particular communication thread includes a particular textportion that is indicative of a decision which a group member wishes toassign an attribute to, the group member may select the particular textportion and select an attribute to assign to the particular textportion. The selection of the particular text portion may beaccomplished by any suitable means, such as by highlighting with astylus, a mouse, a finger, etc. Additionally, in an exemplaryembodiment, once the particular text portion has been selected, anattribute menu may be provided from which a respective attribute may beselected. Examples of attributes may include a decision, a question, anevent, meeting coordinates, or a time and place of either a meeting orthe next online session, however, any attribute could be assigned.

In response to an attribute being assigned to the particular textportion, the asynchronous communication element 86 may receive theparticular text portion and the assigned attribute for dissemination toother group members. In an exemplary embodiment, the asynchronouscommunication element 86 may deliver the attribute and the particulartext portion to group members not currently monitoring the communicationportal 80 by an appropriate means. For example, the asynchronouscommunication element 86 may contact the group members not currentlymonitoring the communications portal 80 via contact informationassociated with each of the group members not currently monitoring thecommunication portal 80 which may be stored in the member list on theserver terminal 70. Alternatively, the attribute may specify a means ofnotification or contacting the group members not currently monitoringthe communication portal 80. For example, a decision attribute mayspecify contacting of group members via an SMS message, while a questionattribute may specify that the question be posed to a group memberimmediately upon accessing to the communication portal 80, when thegroup member next accesses the communication portal 80.

In an exemplary embodiment, a priority may be associated with eachattribute in which the priority determines the means of notification.For example, an event may be a low priority attribute, while a decisionmay be a high priority attribute. Accordingly, in response to assignmentof a low priority attribute, the asynchronous communication element 86may display the attribute and/or the text portion on a display of eachof the group members who were not monitoring the communication portal 80the next time they access the communication portal 80. In response toassignment of a high priority attribute, the asynchronous communicationelement 86 may send, for example, an MMS message, an SMS message and/oremail to each of the group members who were not monitoring thecommunication portal 80. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, theattribute may be assigned and a priority may be separately specified,for example, by selecting a priority level from a menu. The asynchronouscommunication element 86 then selects a notification technique based onthe selected priority. According to another alternative, the member listmay specify a preferential notification technique, based on eitherclient or portal manager input.

It should also be noted that although the above description has beenprovided in the context of a group based communication portal,embodiments of the present invention also apply to a one to onecommunication context such as a group employing IM for communications.In such a group, a group member may have a group list which includescontact information for each other member of the group. During a realtime conversation with one individual, the group member may select aportion of the text and assign an attribute as described above. Then, inresponse to the assigning of the attribute, the portion of the text andthe attribute may be communicated to each other member of the group. Forexample, the group member's mobile terminal may send an SMS message, MMSmessage or email to each other member of the group based on the contactinformation from the group list.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a system, method and program product accordingto exemplary embodiments of the invention. It will be understood thateach block or step of the flowcharts, and combinations of blocks in theflowcharts, can be implemented by various means, such as hardware,firmware, and/or software including one or more computer programinstructions. For example, one or more of the procedures described abovemay be embodied by computer program instructions. In this regard, thecomputer program instructions which embody the procedures describedabove may be stored by a memory device of the server terminal andexecuted by a built-in processor in the server terminal. As will beappreciated, any such computer program instructions may be loaded onto acomputer or other programmable apparatus (i.e., hardware) to produce amachine, such that the instructions which execute on the computer orother programmable apparatus create means for implementing the functionsspecified in the flowcharts block(s) or step(s). These computer programinstructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that candirect a computer or other programmable apparatus to function in aparticular manner, such that the instructions stored in thecomputer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture includinginstruction means which implement the function specified in theflowcharts block(s) or step(s). The computer program instructions mayalso be loaded onto a computer or other programmable apparatus to causea series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or otherprogrammable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process suchthat the instructions which execute on the computer or otherprogrammable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functionsspecified in the flowcharts block(s) or step(s).

Accordingly, blocks or steps of the flowcharts support combinations ofmeans for performing the specified functions, combinations of steps forperforming the specified functions and program instruction means forperforming the specified functions. It will also be understood that oneor more blocks or steps of the flowcharts, and combinations of blocks orsteps in the flowcharts, can be implemented by special purposehardware-based computer systems which perform the specified functions orsteps, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computerinstructions.

In this regard, one embodiment of a method for providing real timecontent attributing includes assigning an attribute to a selectedportion of real time content at operation 100. Operation 100 may includeselecting a portion of text from a real time conversation thread. Atoperation 110, an optional operation of assigning a priority to theattribute may be performed. At operation 120, an optional operation ofselecting a delivery means responsive to the priority may be performed.The selected portion is asynchronously delivered to selected recipientsbased on the attribute at operation 130.

Furthermore, according to exemplary embodiments, the selected groupmembers may be notified by a means determined based on a priorityselected. Alternatively, the attribute may correspond to a priority, inwhich case the selected group members are notified based on the prioritycorresponding to the attribute, such that the priority determines whichnotification means is selected. Alternatively, the attribute maycorrespond directly with a particular notification means. As yet anotheralternative, the member list may specify a preferential order ofnotification means.

The above described functions may be carried out in many ways. Forexample, any suitable means for carrying out each of the functionsdescribed above may be employed to carry out the invention. In oneembodiment, all or a portion of the elements of the invention generallyoperate under control of a computer program product. The computerprogram product for performing the methods of embodiments of theinvention includes a computer-readable storage medium, such as thenon-volatile storage medium, and computer-readable program codeportions, such as a series of computer instructions, embodied in thecomputer-readable storage medium.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the inventions set forthherein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which theseinventions pertain having the benefit of the teachings presented in theforegoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is tobe understood that the inventions are not to be limited to the specificembodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments areintended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a genericand descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

1. A method of providing content attributing during an ongoingconversation, the method comprising: receiving an assignment of anattribute to a selected portion of content from the ongoingconversation; and asynchronously delivering the selected portion toselected recipients based on the attribute.
 2. A method according toclaim 1, further comprising assigning a priority to the attribute.
 3. Amethod according to claim 2, further comprising selecting a type ofdelivery responsive to the priority.
 4. A method according to claim 1,wherein assigning the attribute comprises assigning an attribute that isindicative of a priority associated with the selected portion.
 5. Amethod according to claim 4, wherein asynchronously delivering furthercomprises delivering the selected portion by a means selected based onthe priority.
 6. A method according to claim 1, wherein asynchronouslydelivering further comprises delivering the selected portion by acommunication means selected responsive to the attribute.
 7. A methodaccording to claim 1, wherein asynchronously delivering comprisessending a message selected from a group comprising: an email message; ashort message service (SMS) message; and a multimedia messaging service(MMS) message.
 8. A method according to claim 1, further comprisingselecting the recipients from a member list that identifies members thatare not currently participating in a conversation.
 9. A computer programproduct for providing content attributing during an ongoingconversation, the computer program product comprising at least onecomputer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program codeportions stored therein, the computer-readable program code portionscomprising: a first executable portion for receiving an assignment of anattribute to a selected portion of content of the ongoing converstion;and a second executable portion for asynchronously delivering theselected portion to selected recipients based on the attribute.
 10. Acomputer program product according to claim 9, further comprising athird executable portion for assigning a priority to the attribute. 11.A computer program product according to claim 10, further comprising afourth executable portion for selecting a type of delivery responsive tothe priority.
 12. A computer program product according to claim 9,wherein the first executable portion comprises instructions forassigning the attribute being indicative of a priority associated withthe selected portion.
 13. A computer program product according to claim12, wherein the second executable portion comprises instructions fordelivering the selected portion by a means selected based on thepriority.
 14. A computer program product according to claim 9, whereinthe second executable portion comprises instructions for delivering theselected portion by a communication means selected responsive to theattribute.
 15. A computer program product according to claim 9, whereinthe second executable portion comprises instructions for sending amessage selected from a group comprising: an email message; a shortmessage service (SMS) message; and a multimedia messaging service (MMS)message.
 16. A computer program product according to claim 9, furthercomprising a third executable portion for selecting the recipients froma member list that identifies members that are not currentlyparticipating in a real time communication.
 17. A mobile terminal forproviding content attributing during an ongoing conversation, the mobileterminal comprising: an attributing element configured to receive anassignment of an attribute to a selected portion of content from theongoing conversation; and an asynchronous communication element incommunication with the attributing element, the asynchronouscommunication element being configured to asynchronously deliver theselected portion to selected recipients based on the attribute.
 18. Amobile terminal according to claim 17, wherein the attribute is assignedby one of the mobile terminal and a client device in communication withthe mobile terminal.
 19. A mobile terminal according to claim 17,wherein the attribute is associated with a priority.
 20. A mobileterminal according to claim 19, wherein the asynchronous communicationelement is further configured to select a type of delivery responsive tothe priority.
 21. A mobile terminal according to claim 19, wherein thepriority is assigned by one of the mobile terminal and a client devicein communication with the mobile terminal.
 22. A mobile terminalaccording to claim 17, wherein the asynchronous communication element isfurther capable of delivering the selected portion in accordance withthe attribute.
 23. A mobile terminal according to claim 22, wherein theasynchronous communication element is configured to deliver the selectedportion as a communication means selected from a group comprising: anemail message; a short message service (SMS) message; and a multimediamessaging service (MMS) message.
 24. A mobile terminal according toclaim 17, wherein the asynchronous communication element is furthercapable of delivering the selected portion in accordance with apreference indicated in a member list.
 25. A mobile terminal accordingto claim 17, wherein the content is text content shared over acommunication portal hosted at the mobile terminal and accessible to atleast one client terminal.
 26. A system for providing contentattributing during an ongoing conversation, the system comprising amobile terminal and a client device in communication via a communicationportal, wherein the mobile terminal comprises: an attributing elementconfigured to receive an assignment of an attribute to a selectedportion of content from the ongoing conversation; and an asynchronouscommunication element in communication with the attributing element, theasynchronous communication element being configured to asynchronouslydeliver the selected portion to selected recipients based on theattribute.
 27. A system according to claim 26, wherein the attribute isassigned by one of the mobile terminal and the client device incommunication with the mobile terminal.
 28. A system according to claim26, wherein the attribute is associated with a priority.
 29. A systemaccording to claim 28, wherein the asynchronous communication element isfurther configured to select a type of delivery responsive to thepriority.
 30. A system according to claim 28, wherein the priority isassigned by one of the mobile terminal and the client device incommunication with the mobile terminal.
 31. A system according to claim26, wherein the asynchronous communication element is further configuredto deliver the selected portion by a communication means selectedresponsive to the attribute.
 32. A system according to claim 31, whereinthe communication means is selected from a group comprising: an emailmessage; a short message service (SMS) message; and a multimediamessaging service (MMS) message.
 33. A system according to claim 26,wherein the content is text content shared over a communication portalhosted at the mobile terminal and accessible to the client device.
 34. Amobile terminal for providing content attributing during an ongoingconversation, the mobile terminal comprising: an attributing means forreceiving an assignment of an attribute to a selected portion of contentfrom the ongoing conversation; and an asynchronous communication meansin communication with the attributing means, the asynchronouscommunication means for asynchronously delivering the selected portionto selected recipients based on the attribute.